Green light forFinland street stage

The legendary Harju street stage in the centre of Jyväskylä has today (17 March) been confirmed for Rally Finland.

Organisers included the mixed surface test, last used in 1998, in the route announced last month. However, confirmation to close the roads in the rally’s host city was required from the municipal authorities.

That permission was received today and the 2.20km stage will be used during Thursday and Friday’s legs of the four-day event, which runs on 31 July - 3 August. It replaces the Killeri trotting track super special stage that has been used in recent years.

Harju was a regular feature of the event from its birth and the 2014 route will be very similar to that used previously.

Clerk of the course Kai Tarkiainen said: “We devised the route for this year’s rally very much with the fans’ wishes in mind and it has already been enthusiastically received. Harju puts the final touch to an itinerary, which bows to the rally’s traditions in central Finland. It’s great to see the people of Jyväskylä again welcome rally action to the heart of their city.”